Finally got around to making soap. My wife and I made a batch today and split it into two parts with two different scents. I had a heck of a time finding 100% Lye, but finally found the Rooto brand at Menards.

so for you guys who make soap... has anyone made their own shampoo? I made some tonight for my daughter whos been having some 'itching' issue lately. We went thru 4 shampoos, 2 are nutragena, which she's used with success in the past and the other 1 was what shes been using for over a year... her problem didn't go away changing shampoo and cutting out the conditioner, so what I made was:1/4cup liquid castile soap1/4cup water1/2t olive oilShake it up and use it.

My question is, is there any way to thicken it up? make is closer to the thickness/texture of what you can buy...

so for you guys who make soap... has anyone made their own shampoo? I made some tonight for my daughter whos been having some 'itching' issue lately. We went thru 4 shampoos, 2 are nutragena, which she's used with success in the past and the other 1 was what shes been using for over a year... her problem didn't go away changing shampoo and cutting out the conditioner

I have no idea, but my kids have had good luck with the "burts bees for kids" products. The other thing was to rinse their hair for them, I don't know how old she is but my kids get itchy if I let them do it themselves in the shower. I suspect they don't do a good enough job rinsing it out, and that gets itchy. Same problem on their hands if they don't rinse the soap off well, it gets red and itchy.

I lived on a sailboat for a while. The itchy scalp thing was a recurring nuisance. A couple of shampoos with Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap was the cure. It is a liquid castille soap that is available at just about every healthfood store I've ever been in.

You might give that a try.

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So if I need to use KOH, that means I have to go with a 'hot' method right? Does using lecithin mean a hot method too? and I'm not sure what you mean by 'make your own'

Shes 9, and I know my wife has gotten on her in the past about rinsing well, I'll make sure shes doing that... I forgot all about that part! I forgot to mention the castile soap I bought has the peppermint oil in it... she was telling me last night that it tingled and felt good... but still still iched after her shower and this morning.

euge, sorry for being dense or ignorant, but your comment about using lethicin... you saying add that to the recipe I posted and use the blender? Thanks for the link, I'll try that one too.

btw- My wife tried the one I made last night... absolutely hated it! Her hair lost all its softness, pretty much the best way to descibe it is, it got seriously squeaky clean. I figured it washed all the buildup out of it.

Huh, here I thought I was the only one. I made a 7lb batch a year ago. I'm on the last bar now.

Don't remember the recipe offhand, but it was lye from Ace hardware and 7lbs of beef kidney fat rendered down. I poured it in a rectangular pyrex baking dish and cut it into bars with a chef's knife. Not pretty, but simple.

Also, I'm told that drip lye makes a soft soap - as in liquid - unless you add table salt. But I don't know anything about that from personal experience.

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euge, sorry for being dense or ignorant, but your comment about using lethicin... you saying add that to the recipe I posted and use the blender? Thanks for the link, I'll try that one too.

btw- My wife tried the one I made last night... absolutely hated it! Her hair lost all its softness, pretty much the best way to descibe it is, it got seriously squeaky clean. I figured it washed all the buildup out of it.

yeah castille soap will strip the hair down alot. When I use dr. bronners on my hair I follow with coconut oil. Raw if I want a little coconut aroma, refined if I don't.

I lived on a sailboat for a while. The itchy scalp thing was a recurring nuisance. A couple of shampoos with Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap was the cure. It is a liquid castille soap that is available at just about every healthfood store I've ever been in.

You might give that a try.

Duly noted and tried this am...had that tingly nice sensation for half the day andwent until bedtime before any itchiness returned. I'll give it another go or 2 andhopefully itchy scalp will be gone. Thanks for this Carl...I was not sure what to donext as I have been plagued by this malady...timing of the post uncanny....

My wife and I made our second ever batch of soap today (first time without guidance). Everything went pretty smoothly, just a couple of drops splashed out of the bowl when I was blending. The wife is in love with Coconut Lime Verbena soap from Bath and Body Works, so that's what I was aiming for. Anyway, this is the recipe: